With the competition of fluffy bunnies, brightly coloured Easter eggs and exciting Easter egg hunts instantly grabbing the attention of kids over the Easter period we, as parents and kidmin leaders, struggle to highlight the real message of Easter. How can we compete with the commercialization of Easter? How can we encourage kids to focus on Jesus' sacrifice and its eternal significance? These colourful presentations of the Easter story combine with interactive iPad/Android apps to grab kids' attention and deepen their understanding of Easter.

My daughter-in-law was recently lamenting the lack of quality presentations for her little ones at Easter. This beautifully illustrated version of the Easter story is perfect for younger ages. Produced by David C. Cook, the story is written by well-known children's author, V.Gilbert Beers. 'Your toddler is ready to start building a delight in the Word, a hunger to learn it, ad passion to read it. This is the age to begin building that delight, or hunger, or passion. Next year may be too late.' V.Gilbert Beers

This is a fun retelling of the story, with great illustrations, that grabs their attention while teaching of the importance of Easter. The blurp from producers, Lost Sheep: 'Jerusalem. A lone rider approaches. The cheering crowd swarm to greet him. The King has come, mounted upon his mighty steed Dave the Donkey! Join Dave, his Grandpa and Jesus in this epic Easter tale of power, courage, death and resurrection. If you like Black Beauty you will love Dave the Donkey. Other story formats are available and free downloads.Dave the Donkey app ($2.99)Dave the Donkey Easter resources

The Easter Hunt Devotional app presents an interactive approach with games to play and treasures to find ( egg hunts and puzzles to solve with the egg) that lead to the devotion. Includes 12 separate Easter devotions that can be used daily with the fun activities or read in larger portions.

There is a surprise 3D model of the tomb included on Resurrection Day that kids can explore.

He is Risen: An Easter story This interactive story app is one of the Nest Family Apps. You may be familiar with their well-presented, animated Bible stories. The ineractive Easter story includes mazes, word puzzles and colouring pages. Check out the clip..

Yes, Easter is an exciting time for kids but balance these fun aspects of Easter with some of these interactive apps that focus on the real meaning of Easter